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Molecular evolution is a diachronic process of genetic change, taking place as a result of stochastic events, as well as natural selection. However, most of the evidence available for the study of molecular evolution is indirect and circumstantial, involving deduction from the distribution of polymorphism within and between modern species. A fundamentally new approach to evolutionary biology would be opened if it could be proved possible to investigate directly the fate of genes in a species or a population over substantial time periods. The present communication summarizes some preliminary attempts to achieve this by studying the preservation of DNA in ancient human remains.
Svante Pääbo (Wed,) studied this question.